The invention relates to rolling coaster apparatus for small children.
One such rolling coaster is described in U.S. Pat. No. 1,572,273. This rolling device comprises a wheel mounted foreshortened cover shell on which the child's stomach rests. In order to prevent a child from rolling thereunder, ridges are formed on the sides. Furthermore, a child can be fastened by a belt positioned in the vicinity of the ridges. The cover tapers downwardly at its rear end in order to form a backwards extending continuation platform surface over whose sides the feet of the child pass alongside to rest on the ground. A similar continuation platform surface is provided on the front side of the cover which gradually tapers toward the front. A child can grip with the hands the sides of the forward continuation and reach with the hands down toward the ground. Through kicking motion with the legs and pushing motion of the arms the child can move the rolling coaster forward. This rolling coaster can be used by small children over six months old.
This rolling coaster nevertheless qualifies for the intended purpose of sitting on it. Thus, for example, the cover as a whole is caused to slope so that a small child in spite of the belt can slip out to the rear. If the belt is so tightly pulled on both sides in order to prevent the possibility of slipping out, then the child is held in place. Besides, freedom of the legs is noticeably restricted because of a sharp notch between the cover and a rearwardly positioned platform appendage. Furthermore there is the danger that the child by moving into an object in the vicinity of the hands could be injured. Thus it is intended to provide around the forward part of the front appendage, for example a horsehead, which has the function of a shock absorber; however placed not to disturb the sight of the child, and besides at least to remove shocks from the child to the horsehead.
One important point, a disadvantage of such roller coasters is the drawing in of the arms in the locomotion. With small children of an age of a few weeks coordinated movement of the arms and legs is not yet developed. Later the control of the head movements of the small children follows essentially through the support of the arms, so that however, with prior art roller carriages, significant movement of the back is possible as a risk taken when the small child has arms resting on the floor.
On the other hand, it is known that small children of the age of four weeks or earlier exhibit a distinct locomotion urge and already accomplish a kind of crawling locomotion, so that this invention has the object of providing rolling coasting equipment that improves the state of the art so that a small child at this age is able with the help of the roller coaster to investigate independently how to propel himself forward without instruction and without danger.